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Friday federal headlines - January 17, 2014

Friday - 1/17/2014, 7:49am EST

The Morning Federal Newscast is a daily compilation of the stories you hear Federal
Drive hosts Tom Temin and Emily Kopp discuss throughout the show each day. The
Newscast is designed to give FederalNewsRadio.com users more information about the
stories you hear on the air.

When it came to cybersecurity, Health and Human Services put the cart before
the horse. Officials tell members of the House Oversight Committee they didn't
think HealthCare.gov was tested enough for security before it launched in October.
Teresa Fryer is the chief information security officer at the Centers for Medicare
and Medicaid Services. She tells lawmakers the site eventually passed security testing in late
December. Fryer says she didn't want the site to launch before testing. That
sentiment was echoed by Frank Baitman, the chief information officer at HHS. He
says repeated attempts to hack the HealthCare.gov have failed. (Associated
Press)

The Secret Service has taken interest in a retail cybersecurity breach affecting up
to 70 million people. It hired the cyber intelligence company iSight Partners to
look into the attack that's rocked retail giant Target. iSight says a piece of
malware called KAPTOXA has potentially affected many retail point-of-sale systems.
It says KAPTOXA appears to have Russian origins. The company says its researchers
started noticing retail malware in the wild back in June. (Associated Press)

Two senators want to set national guidelines for notifying consumers about major data breaches. Sen. Tom
Carper (D-Del.) and Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) say their bill would force federal
agencies, banks and retailers to do a better job of protecting personal and
financial information. And should a severe breach occur, the agency or company
would have to tell regulators, law enforcement and consumer reporting agencies.
The lawmakers say today's patchwork of state laws confuses consumers. (Senate)

The Senator known as "Dr. No" says he'll resign after the current session of
Congress. Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) will
leave two years before his term is up. He was recently diagnosed with a
recurrence of prostate cancer. Coburn had already vowed not to seek a third term.
The Senator got his nickname for his constant battling against government waste
and excessive spending. His annual Wastebook reports have become popular reading
in Washington, D.C. As a physician, Coburn has practiced family medicine in
Muskogee,
Okla. (Associated Press)

Pentagon leaders are feeling less queasy now that a 2014 spending bill is
headed to President Barack Obama. The bill gives the Defense Department greater
stability
and helps it maintain readiness. But it doesn't solve other problems. The
Congressional Budget Office suggests military retirees should pay more for their
healthcare. It could save anywhere from $20 billion to $60 billion over a
decade. But that's an idea Congress repeatedly has rejected. The Defense
Department spent $52 billion on health care for service members, retirees and
their families in 2012. (Congressional Budget Office)

The Air Force has finished re-testing its nuclear missle launch
crewmen following reports of cheating on earlier tests. 34 crewmen were suspended
at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Mont., when the cheating came to light. Navy Rear
Adm. John Kirby says nearly all remaining crewmen passed their tests. Testing was
to cover 497 people. The Pentagon says Secretary Chuck Hagel has taken a keen
interest in problems in the nuclear missile command. He's said to be exploring
whether new incentives to recruit and retain ICBM staff would help. (Defense
Department)

Neil Armstrong's memory will live on at a NASA center. President
Barack Obama has signed a bill that renames a Southern California flight
research facility after the late astronaut. There is a loser in the scenario. The
center is now named after former NASA executive Hugh Dryden. As a consolation, the
center's test range will get Dryden's name. Armstrong was a test pilot at the
Mojave Desert facility before he walked on the moon. NASA says it's developing a
timeline for the name change. (NASA)

President Barack Obama is expected to back modest changes to NSA surveillance when
he gives a speech at the Justice Department this morning. White House spokesman
Jay Carney says the President believes surveillance should be more transparent to
give the public more confidence. Obama will call for changes but leave the
specifics up to Congress. Lawmakers are at odds on the issue, with intelligence
committee members defending the National Security Agency's programs and judiciary
committee members wanting more changes. Regardless, it appears the NSA will
continue gathering phone records. (Associated Press)